For those who don’t watch Fox’s “Red Eye,” Thaddeus McCotter is a virtual unknown. The Michigan congressman is running for the Republican presidential nomination, however, and in keeping with his personal style, the McCotter campaign is a bit unorthodox.
There have been examples of this so far for those paying close attention. One subtle suggestion of the unorthodox nature of the campaign was when McCotter hired what would normally be called a state director in New Hampshire. Why do I say “would normally be called”? Because the McCotter campaign, the new hire told Politico, is “not a title-driven campaign,” so he didn’t have one.
McCotter, though, may be the smartest–and easily the funniest–candidate in the field. I wrote about him here in May. Concerning policy, this is the basic roundup of where he stands:
McCotter is also aching to reframe the terms of the debate. The War on Terror, to McCotter, is really the War for Freedom, to be fought against “kufar fascism” with our “arsenal of democracy.” To McCotter, the United Nations is a “global Tammany Hall.” He decries the left’s “civil religion” and the pro-China lobby’s maxim, in his words, “make loot not war.”
McCotter is pro-market–he rails against the overregulation he calls the red tape worm–but he also warns against the transfer from a nation-state to a market-state ruled by global elites, referencing Wilhelm Röpke’s “humane economy.” And while he is pro-free trade, he seeks to advance the cause of “freedom trade”–tying trade agreements to human rights and ethical trade practices (and quoting Natan Sharansky in the process).
On defense, he is a vigorous supporter of peace through strength (instead of “peace through speech”), and he is especially tough on Iran and China. He compares the Iran-Syria alliance to the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact, and calls for a Liberty Alliance that would not include a military component.
He’s also the guitarist for a (bipartisan) congressional rock band called The Second Amendments, and is a serious student of philosophy. The Daily Caller interviewed McCotter earlier this month, where you can get a sense of how he approaches the candidacy–and you’ll be treated to answers like this: “As a Detroiter, I instinctively reject the Gucci-shoed D.C. divas’ dysfunction that deems what’s nuts is normal.”
But for the lighter side of Thaddeus McCotter, the group Students For McCotter has released a greatest hits video, and there is still his classic House floor speech entitled, “How to speak Democrat.” Both well worth your time. Though he isn’t a top-tier candidate, he’ll at least spice up the debates.
